St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-02-24
HOW HEWITT STANDS.
He Places Himself Flatly in Opposition
to All Existing Secret Labor
Organizations,
And Declares That They Are Establish
ing System of White Slavery
in the North,
Which He Says Resembles Seryitude
a. in the South Before
the War.
A Letter Which Will Cause Wide.
spread Comment and Much
Criticism.


NEW YORK, Feb. 23.-The following
letter from Mayor Hewitt was read at the
New ork Southern Society's BANQUET last
night:
There was but one exception in the consti.
tution as originally framed to the guarantees
vi personal liberty to every citizen and the
result OF the fortunes of the North and South
were were most marked, and is now apparent to
every student of politics. Where labor 10
free and the citizen NAV dispose of b1S ti,no
ana eHort as he sees fit, progress even where
natural resources are few, is inevitable The
resources OF the South in coal and iron and
the otoer useful metals were perfectly we'll
known before the civil war | called atten
ton to them as early as 1856 and predicted
then the development which is now going on
almost miraculous in its extent and rapidity.
l suppose the demonstration is complete even
to every Southern man, that
THE LIBERTY OF THE CITIZEN
Is essential to the prosperity of society. And
yet, while this demonstration has been ponr
OH Defore our eyes in the South a retroprsde
movement has been inaugurated in the North
looking 10 the enSlavement of the citizen and
the destruction of all right to free action ey
cept so Tar as it may be exercised in the
cholce OF irresponsible agents to whom a
secret organization sees fit to intrust power
"ltnln the last lew weeks we have seen large
oooles or men, confessng that they had no
grievances, deliberately Quit work on the
order Oh secret tribunal, whose power tbev
dared not call in question and of whom evarv
man stood III dread. 1t is incredible that in
the North, where the fruits of free povern-
ment and OF the personal right of each man
10 employ hlmseif according to his own will
nave Geen so conSpicuously demonstrated nv
the growth of hundred years, any man
Would De wiling to sacrifice his personal in
dependence and yield it to ignorant. selfish
and unscrupulous leaders, using this power
only for their personal advantage Indeed
sucn tyranny would never have been possible
Dut Tor the ingenious and dangerous heresv
Wnlch made IL possible for men to refuse to
work with other men who have not seen fit to
join these secret organizations Society
never contemplated that this power would be
exercised so as to practically reduce any por-
tlon OF the workmen of the land to the condi-
ton OF not being able TO get work upon any
terms whatever except compulsory member
snip with organizations governed by secret
and
IRRESPONSIBLE TRIB UNAI
when men who are seeking work And there
Is only one condition upon which they can
get 1t. they must surrender their private
views and their personal independence to the
necessities OF the case. Sacrifice having
been made, the power OF the leaders becomes
absolute. We all sympathize with tht. work.
ingmen of the country, and are glad that the
wages of labor are steadily on the increase
we rejoice that capital has so increased that
lt da'ly becomes cheaper to those who are
compelled to borrow, because labor profits
when the cost of capital is reduced But the
benefit which would thus under natural laws
accrue to the great mass of the people is
largely, if not entirely, Deutralized by the
losses of compulsory strikes and enforced
ldleness. No one would interfere with the
right of free association on the part Of anv
class of our citizens. On the contrary, such
associations are to be encouraged up to the
point where they undertake to deprive the
citizen OF his personal liberty. At this point
county is attacked, but its pro-
gress in wealth will be checked
and all incentives TO special effort in order to
achieve the larger rewards due to skill and
genius will be arrested. Hence, you of the
South and we of the North must take a firm
and decided position that under no circum-
stances will we permit the labor of the citizen
TO be enslaved, and that if additional legisa-
tion is required to meet this new and per-
nlcious movement, which would relegate the
North to the condition in which the South
was before the war in regard to it's labor, NJ
time should be lost in securing it's enactment.
There is no doubt that revision of the laws
relating to employment is necessary, and
while have abundant faith in the good sense
of our people, and in the utter failure of all
class movements, which are at war with the
fundamental principles Of the constitution
my experience has taught me that the safe.
guard of the law is absolutely essential for
the security of society and that the enforce
ment of the law is the best guarantee of the
stability Of industry and the equitable dis.
tribution of wealth. Very truly yours,
ABRAM S. HEWITT.
BIT OF A SENSATION.
Mayor Hewitt was invited to attend the
Brooklyn dinner last night. but declined
gin a long letter. In the letter was SEN
tence saying that certain high officials
leaders of the Democratic party, had
pandered to the labor vote, and deploring
their action. The dinner committee, bv
majority vote, decided that the letter
should be read at the dinner One of the
majority suggested that Mr.. Hewitt be
asked to cutout the sentence. Itwas then
decided that the letter should be read as
it stood. as Mr.. Hewitt would have been
permitted to say the same thing if he had
been present. Then one of the minority
submitted the letter to Gov. Hill. A men,
ber of the majority said that the governor
returned word that he would not come if
the letter were to be read. The governor
came and the letter was not read. The
majority did not know what had become of
it, and the minority refused to say any,
thing about it.